Off the Hook
by guillotineghost
Summary: The Christmas date with Adachi and the fem!protag, set in the Accomplice route.


**A/N:** This was probably the most fun of the Christmas dates to write, although Adachi thinks gift giving is for kids. Not really, he's probably just too broke. Also obligatory reminder that fem protag isn't a genderbend Souji.

X~x~x~x

The morning before Christmas, and the protagonist awoke at two in the afternoon. Christmas vacation never lasted long, and so the opportunity to laze about was one best indulged in. Especially when she'd kept herself tired over the past week, fighting shadows and instructing her teammates.  
>Didn't foreign students get an entire two weeks off from school?<p>

Not fair.

She might have slept later, if not for her phone ringing.

With half lidded eyes that longed to return to her slumber, she sat up and answered.

The investigation team had agreed to take off a few days from exploring inside of the TV, due to the holiday, so why would anyone be calling her?

When she flipped her phone open, she heard none other Adachi's voice on the other line.

"So, I got the day off. You wanna come over to my place, if you can get away from your uncle?"

The protagonist accepted the offer without a second thought, already formulating an excuse for Dojima and weighing who would be the most believable cover. Yosuke, maybe? Probably.

Having to lie wasn't anything that she hadn't adapted to over the last few months. Adachi had insisted, in a less than polite tone, that she not tell anyone about them. Not that she had planned to, but seeing him get flustered about the possibility of Dojima breaking a coffee mug over his head held a certain dry amusement for her. And there was something about his demanding tone that she liked.

It wasn't her first time going to Adachi's house, given that being seen together too often in public would have raised suspicions. Despite the slightly torn furniture and the scattered newspapers lying about the living room, it always gave the impression of vacancy, which was fitting given that the inhabitant only stayed for short periods of time and then left just as quickly. The station—no, Dojima—really had been working him like a mule. He hadn't bothered cleaning up, with the mindset that there wasn't any need to put on a front that he was going to be tidy just because there was a girl around.  
>Not that she'd commented on the state of his living space, because it fit him in an organized chaos manner.<p>

"Glad I got you alone," he said when she stepped through the door. It was clear that he'd been waiting, sitting at the table in the center of the living room with a bottle of sake and two plastic cups. "You've drank before, right?"

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>PLAYER CHOICE<p>

A few times, actually.  
>Alcohol is gross…<br>[This'll be my first time.]  
>x- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - x<p>

"Lucky me, getting to take all the firsts of such a cute girl." Adachi looked pleased with himself and quietly laughed in a voice that almost slipped into menacing.

The protagonist took a seat next to him, skipping the formality of pretending that their bodies wouldn't have contact at some point during today.

"Don't worry, this stuff isn't too strong. In fact, after you take a few drinks, you won't even care about the taste anymore." He filled the cup on her side with a generous amount of the alcoholic concoction and watched her expectantly.

She lifted it to her mouth, hesitating a moment because she remembered overhearing some of the other girls at school talking about how the only heavy drinks they could manage had to be fruit flavored. The "normal stuff" was too gross, especially things like vodka and rum when not mixed with anything.  
>But she wasn't like them, right?<br>She could handle this. If she could stomach half of the unknown foods in the refrigerator back home, she could stomach sake.

With that determination in mind, she downed the liquid in a few quick gulps, resisting the urge to clutch at her chest when it felt like gasoline had been ignited inside.

Her facial expression must have given away her distaste, but just Adachi smiled and pat her shoulder wholeheartedly. "It gets better, I promise." He took a sip from his own cup, and proceeded to complain about an incident that occurred a few days ago when Dojima "accidentally" knocked his coffee over and blamed him for where he'd placed the mug.  
>Over the course of the next few drinks, the protagonist began to feel slightly dizzy. Almost as if she'd bumped her head against something.<br>She knew it had to be an effect of the sake, but that didn't make the state of being out of her own mind any less unappealing. She liked being aware and being able to think, although…this didn't feel _too_ bad. She could understand using this stuff to wind down after stressful situations, at least.

"…So speaking of," Adachi set his drink down and looked to her curiously, although his eyes held a glint of something else. Something she was too intoxicated to identify. "Have you and your friends made any progress in finding the killer? Not that I expect a bunch of highschoolers to solve something like this, but you guys are sharper than you let on."

He hadn't asked her a question like this before, not here.

_It felt as if her response would be crucial to her relationship with Adachi._

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>PLAYER CHOICE<p>

No, not really…  
>We have it figured out.<br>[I won't let anything happen to you.]  
>x- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - x<p>

Adachi was quiet for a few seconds, giving her a perplexed, deer in headlights stare, and then erupted into cackling. "Y-You think that the killer is going to come after me next? That's funny! You're hilarious, you know."  
>He clearly couldn't gather his thoughts enough right now to make more of the conversation than that, but he wouldn't forget what she'd said.<p>

"Well, I think that's enough drinking." When he'd settled down from his laughing fit, which left the protagonist feeling almost awkward, he lifted himself from the table. "And I don't want to send you home plastered. Your uncle's a scary guy to be in trouble with."

He took her hand and helped her stand, for a second looking as if he was worried she might actually fall over.  
>The protagonist very well could have—she hadn't been expecting to be it with another wave of this drunken, unsteady feeling when she stood up. She felt the side of her head, as if she could channel sobriety into it.<br>Had she really drank that much?

Adachi smiled at her, amused at seeing the girl holding herself together. He pressed his lips to her forehead, pulling her to him with his arms tightly wrapped around her waist. "But before you head home, let's take this to my room, huh?"

She lightly nodded, not wanting to shake her brain too much, and followed him out of the living room. He seemed to be in a much better mood now, given that she'd just told him he was off the hook for committing murder. He seemed almost confused about her response, as if he expected her feelings for him to not be genuine.  
>But Adachi was pleased nonetheless, and intended to return the favor behind his bedroom door.<p>

_The protagonist spent a long time with Adachi…_

_Christmas continues…_


End file.
